Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Acquires 29,104,112 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Key Points

• Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 144.6%, acquiring an additional 29 million shares, bringing their total ownership to nearly 49.2 million shares.
• Merck & Co., Inc. reported earnings of $2.13 EPS for the latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, while revenue reached $15.81 billion, slightly below estimates.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, which represents a 4.1% yield, highlighting its commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 144.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 49,229,283 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 29,104,112 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises 0.8% of Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 1.96% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $4,418,820,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA now owns 5,361 shares of the company's stock valued at $481,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the period. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,197 shares of the company's stock valued at $466,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Tilson Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Tilson Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,965 shares of the company's stock valued at $446,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co now owns 6,021 shares of the company's stock valued at $540,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Forza Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,761 shares of the company's stock valued at $966,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MRK. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 target price (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of MRK stock traded down $0.68 during trading on Monday, hitting $80.01. 2,221,251 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,625,891. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $199.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.33, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.38. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $80.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $83.86. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $120.30.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.05%. As a group, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.92%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a health care company, which engages in the provision of health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health, and consumer care products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceutical, Animal Health, and Other. The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products.